Role Purpose

F&B Vertical Lead is responsible for driving the company’s entry and growth in the Food & Beverage sector. This is a hands-on role focused on market penetration and direct merchant acquisition. The leader will engage with restaurants, cafés, catering companies, and small chains to build a strong client base. At the same time, the role will explore partnerships that accelerate reach and establish scalable acquisition channels.

Key Deliverables

  • Rapidly growing client base in the F&B sector.
  • Direct onboarding of F&B merchants.
  • Established relationships with local industry associations, suppliers, and ecosystem players.
  • Active sales pipeline of qualified opportunities.
  • Market insights into F&B trends, customer needs, and competitive offerings.
  • Go-to-market initiatives tailored for the vertical in collaboration with Sales and Product teams.

Key Result

Achieve strong market penetration into the UAE F&B segment by building a solid merchant base, developing scalable acquisition channels, and laying the foundation for long-term revenue growth.

Metrics

  • Number of merchants signed.
  • Monthly growth of active client base.
  • Revenue generated from F&B clients.
  • Volume and quality of leads from local partners.
  • Client retention and activity rate.

Responsibilities

Market Penetration & Client Acquisition

  • Identify, approach, and sign F&B merchants (restaurants, cafés, catering businesses, small hotel outlets).
  • Own the end-to-end sales cycle: prospecting, pitching, negotiating, and closing.
  • Build early case studies and success stories with clients.
  • Actively represent the company within the F&B community and industry events.

Partnership Development

  • Build partnerships with local suppliers, POS vendors, associations, and business networks to generate leads.
  • Co-develop acquisition campaigns with partners.
  • Manage ongoing partner relationships to ensure consistent pipeline flow.

Market Strategy & Execution

  • Maintain and grow a qualified pipeline of opportunities.
  • Gather merchant feedback and translate it into insights for Product and Sales teams.
  • Prepare regular reports and analysis on F&B performance.
  • Continuously adapt strategy to maximize acquisition efficiency.

Work Experience & Qualifications

  • 3–5 years of commercial or business development experience, preferably in fintech, payments, SaaS, POS solutions, or related technology sectors.
  • Proven track record of acquiring and managing merchants in the F&B sector.
  • Strong network and relationships within the F&B ecosystem (restaurants, cafés, suppliers, associations).
  • Hands-on sales experience: from prospecting to closing deals and managing client accounts.
  • Experience working in a startup or high-growth environment is a strong plus.
  • Excellent communication, negotiation, and presentation skills.
  • Fluent in English; Arabic is an advantage.

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